Moon's Shine
by KT2249
Summary: When the Malfoys are attacked leaving Draco orphaned and in danger, he will be sent away for his safety, until he can return to Hogwarts. Who is the witch charged with keeping him safe? Why didn't he put up more of a fight when she came for him? When he gets where they're going, he'll wish he had. Is his racing pulse due to anger? Or her?
1. Chapter 1

CHAPTER 1

It was unusually quiet around the burrow. A home that had once been filled with boisterous, jovial voices that laughed at, and with each other, was now only occupied by soft, carefully worded whispers. The end of the war, they thought, would be a relief and filled with animated declarations of freedom; freedom from oppression, and freedom from the fear Voldemort had cast over all of them. While all of that was true, they hadn't anticipated the weight of the grief and the overwhelming feelings of guilt that accompanied being the ones left standing. They knew that in time they would heal, but Merlin was time moving slowly.

A month had passed since the Battle at Hogwarts and the school was still undergoing reconstruction. The new Headmistress McGonagall had sent out a missive to all school age children that she anticipated the beginning of this coming school year would be delayed by about a month or more. Their days had been filled with attending the funerals of loved ones who had fallen, and the trials of those who fought against them. In between all this Harry, Hermione, and Ron were trying to help the aurors in tracking down any, and all Death Eaters who had escaped capture after the last battle. They had only been semi-successful considering many well-known death eaters were still at large. Names like Dolohov, Yaxley, and Greyback haunted their waking hours. They found some relief in sleep on the nights when the nightmares did not come, but admittedly, they were few and far between.

Most Death Eaters who had faced trial had received the kiss, or life in Azkaban depending on the severity of their individual crimes. One family, surprisingly had avoided such a conviction. Harry and Hermione had spoken on behalf of the Malfoy family, explaining that while their crimes were abhorrent, many were committed under duress and Narcissa Malfoy and Draco had both made attempts to keep the three of them alive, Narcissa when she lied to Voldemort, and Draco when he hesitated in identifying them after they had been captured and brought to the manor. As a result, Lucius still went to Azkaban but for a reduced amount of time and Draco and Narcissa were given house arrest for the remainder of the summer which would be lifted when Draco attended his mandatory 7th year of school and then attended some Ministry mandated community service and muggle studies courses. This was also in addition to hefty fines and a percentage contributed to the school's restoration.

As heavy as the air around the burrow felt, and as melancholy as the atmosphere was around them, they knew that things would get better. The storm had passed and they were eager to rebuild society, eager to enjoy the comfort found in each other's arms, and eager to move on from the brutal feelings the war had stirred up. They were alive, they were together, and they would heal. The worst was over, or so they thought. That was until they had a very unexpected guest at the burrow, accompanied by a panicked house elf who told a story that would reopen old wounds only just beginning to close. With the arrival of a battered and unconscious Draco Malfoy and his house elf to the burrow, weaving tales of the missing and wanted Death Eaters, they all realized with horror that though Voldemort was dead, his memory and mission was long from gone in the minds, and hearts (if they had them) of his faithful disciples.

When the aurors arrived at Malfoy Manor, all traces of the missing Death Eaters were gone. What was left were the remnants of a vicious duel and the body of the fallen family matriarch. The house elves were trying to clear the debris around the parlor and many wept for their mistress. The aurors scoured the area and came up empty handed as to any leads, but they would continue searching.

Back at the Burrow, Hermione had been using every healing spell she knew to try to save Draco. He had been badly cursed and had been physically attacked, as well, it appeared as many of his wounds were not the result of magic. Harry had been speaking with the head auror, Gawain Robards, over the floo giving, and gathering, details of what had taken place, while Ron paced and huffed.

"I don't know why you're trying so hard to save him. He's one of them! He's a Death Eater! If they want to start killing each other, what does that have to do with us, besides save us the grief?" Ron said.

Hermione spun on him, "I'm going to pretend you didn't say that! Malfoy did a lot of terrible things during the war, I won't pretend he's an angel, but without him and his mother we may very well be dead and Voldemort could be running the ministry! So, if you're quite finished, hand me that bit of cloth there."

"You know what I mean Hermione, but he seems like a lost cause why break your neck over it?" Ron asked her, speaking softer this time knowing he was treading dangerous water where his girlfriend was concerned, especially as she slaved over Draco Malfoy's tattered body.

"Because, he did what was within his power to try to protect us one time when it would have been easier to just hand us over. I won't offer him any less," Hermione said looking tearfully at Ron. Ron nodded his head then and left her to do her work, Malfoy's house elf, who's name they learned was Nalby, was there to assist her. Harry came into the room then to tell them what he had learned from the auror's office.

"Lucius is dead," he said matter of factly.

"What?" Hermione asked, shock evident in her tone and eyes. Draco was now stable though still unconscious. Hermione politely directed Nalby to bring him upstairs to one of the bedrooms. "This was clearly a targeted attack against the Malfoys. Perhaps it's because they got reduced sentences?"

"I agree. Which means that Malfoy is still in danger. He clearly cannot return home, it was breached once and could easily be done again…" Harry stated looking to his friends for ideas.

"What I don't understand is how their wards were breached. The Malfoys have some of the strongest wards I've ever seen on a property," Ron contributed looking instead at the how and why. He had quickly gotten over his refusal to help Malfoy knowing that neither his girlfriend, nor his best friend would let him get away with blowing it off. They were both collectors of the broken and damned, and far be it for him to stand in their way when someone else clearly needed their help.

"Well, when Malfoy and Narcissa were ordered to remain on house arrest they were mandated to lower many of the existing wards on the Manor to allow aurors to come and go for periodic, unscheduled property checks. We were supposed to be keeping them safe," Hermione added with a tinge of guilt filling her throat as she finished. Ron immediately crossed the room to gather her in his arms.

"This isn't anybody's fault 'Mione, nobody's except the creeps that did this. Do we even know which snake-face loving fucks are responsible?" Ron asked while slowly rubbing circles along Hermione's back.

"Nalby said he only recognized Dolohov, and Greyback," Hermione provided while she leaned into Ron's support. She had spent time speaking with the Malfoy house elf while trying to get Draco's bleeding under control.

"Greyback? Do we know if he…?" Ron trailed off the end of the question not wanting to say what he was thinking.

"I don't know, he was so torn up… and there were old and new injuries it's hard to tell anything" Hermione also not wanting to commit to the feeling of foreboding she was feeling left the question unanswered.

"The fact still remains that Malfoy isn't safe at home, and we certainly cannot keep him here. Aside from just trying to keep him and Ron from pulling their wands on each other," to this Ron huffed but didn't deny that it could be a problem, "I won't risk everyone else's safety either. Ginny, your parents, and everyone else have been through enough without bringing the fragments of a dying war to the Burrow's doorstep."

As much as Hermione would love to be the bigger person and say that it was their responsibility to protect him, she couldn't deny the selfish part of her that wanted her one safe place to remain safe. Hogwarts had once been her safe place, but the war had ruined that, and before that it was the arms of her parents who she had yet to find the time to track down to return their memories. With this war lingering the way it was she was starting to think it might be a good idea to put it off just a little while longer. Since the Burrow and Ron were the last safe places she had left she was wont to risk those.

As she was thinking of faraway places, and lands that weren't war ridden and dark, something struck her. "I have an idea!" she said, jumping from Ron's arms to be able to pace as she worked it out in her mind. "It would require approval from a few sources, do you think Gawain would approve the equivalent to a temporary form of a witness protection program?"

"He's not a witness Hermione, he's a criminal. He was on house arrest when he was attacked," Harry said.

"Attacked by the men who we have been trying to track. They probably believe him to be dead based on the wounds I just treated, but he may be able to provide us with information if we give him time to heal. He may even be able to help us track them!" Hermione said starting to get carried away.

"Hermione," Harry hedged, "I like the way you're thinking, but what if he can't give us any information, or he isn't willing to help us?"

"Then he still deserves safety," she said. "He was attacked in his own home; his mother was killed defending him and his father murdered in Azkaban. They were supposed to be safe in the places we told them to stay. The ministry failed them, criminals or not." Ron and Harry both looked at her, unable to disagree. "Get Robards to agree to let me send him to an undisclosed location. The only ones that will know will be the three of us, and his handler."

"And who is going to be his handler?" Ron asked.

"Leave that to me. I just have to get her to agree," Hermione said, walking away from the boys already on her way to write her letter.

"Her?" Ron asked Harry. Looking at each other. "Who in the world is she owling? And where in Merlin is she planning to send Malfoy?"

"Don't look at me. I haven't the faintest idea how I'm going to convince the head auror to allow us to send Malfoy, somewhere on the map without telling him where he's going, who we're sending him to, and that we have no intention of telling him," Harry said trying to figure out how he was going to pull this off. Knowing Hermione though, she'd want everything handled and agreed upon before dinner. So, Harry grabbed Ron by the arm and drug him with him to the fireplace. He was going to need all the help he could get.

She brushed her dusty hands off on the side of her jeans. And made her way inside the main house. She was greeted by the smell of honey and magnolia that was so comforting and familiar. It's what "home" smelled like. This time of day she knew that her Grandmother would be setting up lunch and tea. She washed her hands at the deep, barn style sink before walking into the back sunroom on the first floor of her family's home. The sunroom was painted yellow in color with a screen that enclosed the space overlooking a hundred acres of clear, clean, beautiful fields and farmland. She and her grandmother would often spend evenings here watching the sun sink low over the ridge of the horizon before Nana would stand to go get settled in for the night, and get some rest before the sun would rise again. Raven would usually stay up, she always had a fascination with the stars and the way they had a tendency to make her feel both insignificant and powerful all at once.

Sure, enough her grandmother was there with two plates for lunch, Ham and cheese sandwiches, potato chips, and sweet tea with ice. "I had a feeling you might want to talk today," Nana said. She may not be a witch but she always had feelings and very rarely were they wrong. Raven was never sure whether it was some remnants of magic that hadn't manifested in her Nana or if it was just a skill grandmothers developed over time, but regardless she had been right. Again.

"I was hoping I could run something by you and get your input," Raven told her.

"Come take a seat Darlin' and tell me what's caused that troubled look in your eye," her Nana said while gesturing to the seat next to her on the small picnic style table and bench. This filled the larger space on the right side of the room for meals. To the left were their whicker sitting chairs. The ones that they'd sit in to watch the sun set.

Raven took a seat next to her Nana and took a bite of her sandwich and sip of tea before she began. Honestly, she had needed the moment to gather how she would approach her grandmother with the questions she had hoped to ask of her. Nana knew though and never pushed her to speak before she was ready. "Well I got an owl today," Raven started.

"I did see that. It's not often one sees an owl out and around during the day in these parts," Nana said knowingly.

"Well, the owl was from a friend of mine from school, from Hogwarts," Raven continued still trying to figure out how to make her way to the question hanging in the air.

"I had assumed as much being that not many folks here in town have a habit for tying notes to birds that I'm aware of. What's going on Rae?" Nana gently nudged.

"Well I know, that you know, that much more happened at school the past couple years than I told you about and you never pressed me to reveal what took place and I appreciate that but it looks like I'm going to have to tell you quite a bit of it now. I hadn't wanted to worry you, but it seems that I can't really help it any longer," Raven paused looking up at her grandmother, who at this point stopped eating to pay attention. To her credit Nana only nodded for Rae to continue. "Well there was a war going on in wizarding London the past couple of years, one that I was fairly involved in because of my roots. The friend that wrote me the letter was one of the good guys. One of the figure heads of the war, if you will. As it turns out there is a boy who needs protection now, and hiding, and she thought that we may be able to help since we are who we are and live where we do. No one would think to come looking for him here."

At this point Rae was pretty well into her story but stopped to look up again at her grandmother to gage her reaction to what she had said so far. "I take it that you would like to take this young man in and are only seeking my approval then?" Nana guessed at the reason for her granddaughter's long-winded explanation.

"I would, but I feel it would only be a fair agreement if I told you a few things about him," Rae again waited prompting from Nana and continued when she nodded at her to do so, "He fought on the other side of the war. He fought against us and has never been a particularly nice person in general. He was in my year in school. However, there were a few things that he did during the war that don't quite fit with this terrible person he is supposed to be, so I have my own suspicions about his motives," to this Nana only raised an eyebrow and continued to nibble on a potato chip. "From what I'm told he and his family were attacked and while he could be saved, both his mother and father, who was in prison at the time, were killed during the attempt on his family."

Nana gasped at this. She closed her eyes and brought her hand to her heart. A part of her hurt knowing that yet another child walked through this world an orphan. She was barely able to comprehend when Willy and Anabel had been killed in that car accident, what would happen to Rae. For a child to know that his parents were not only gone but killed and for him to have potentially witnessed it; the thought was almost more than she could bare. She felt Rae reach out and touch her arm in a show of comfort.

"Do you want to take him in?" Nana asked her.

"I think it would be the right thing to do, but…" Rae started but was cut off.

"Then you best get to writing that letter back and I'll set up the guest house," Nana said.

"But Nana don't you want to know the rest?" Rae asked shocked at her grandmother's abrupt desire to end the conversation but under no illusion as to where it stemmed from.

"I trust you. I trust your judgement. If you say you have suspicions about his commitment to being bad then I believe you. We just have to take the necessary precautions should your intuition be wrong in any case. Or if whoever wants to hurt him happens to come knocking, though it sounds like we might be obscurely situated enough that that shouldn't come to pass," Nana said all the while keeping her tone clear that she expected all necessary precautions to be met and anticipated before the young man stepped foot on their property.

"Thank you, Nana!" Rae said while squeezing her grandmother in a tight hug. They embraced for a short period before Rae cleared her throat and said, "There is one last thing I think you should be fully aware of before I write my letter back." Nana looked at her cautiously. "What do you know about werewolves?"


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER 2

It took a lot of persuasion and a bit of financial incentive to get the port key to England so short notice. She and Hermione had agreed to meet at King's Cross Station where Hermione would then side-along apparate her to the Weasley Burrow since Rae had never been there before.

She arrived at the station at just after 12:00 Noon, two days after having received the original letter from Hermione.

"There you are!" Hermione waved her over. Ron looked confusedly at the petite dark haired girl who had just arrived. Rae waved back and started making her way over to the couple. Ron thought she looked familiar from school but more like a passing face in the halls. She wasn't anyone he ever remembered talking to and couldn't remember any time that Hermione may have made such a close friend that he and Harry didn't know.

Raven had just gotten within a reasonable distance to talk to them and said, "Hey! I'm sorry I couldn't get here sooner but the ministry at home can be a bit of a challenge when it comes to international travel," she moved her satchel bag around to the back of her to hug Hermione. She had become close with Hermione while studying in school. They were both muggle-born and Rae was friends with Luna Lovegood. They often spent time together in the Ravenclaw common room, and while most people had trouble comprehending Luna or even being in the same room as her, Rae could appreciate her aloofness and sometimes sarcastic outlook on the world. The trouble with avoiding Luna, as many people did, is that they could never tell the difference. Rae genuinely thought Luna was one of the funniest people she knew, Luna was also incredibly quick to read a person's character. She was in Ravenclaw for a reason after all. Intelligence was not something Luna was lacking.

Being friends with Luna, and by association Hermione, had left Rae's reputation pretty much under the radar. The other two much more accomplished and recognized witches tended to draw the attention away from Raven. It also helped that they also spent quite a bit of time around Harry Potter who was always in the limelight. Being virtually unknown, but still having those powerful connections had served her incredibly well during the war.

"That's fine! We had a few things to take care of on this end anyway and I don't know that he would have been well enough to travel as soon as yesterday. Honestly, I'm still not sure that it's the best for him but we've got to get him on his way. He's already been with us far too long," Hermione informed Raven. Hermione only spoke in vague terms considering they were in public and didn't know who could be watching or listening. Raven nodded along. She understood the risk they were taking by keeping him in their home. Hell! Wasn't she willingly volunteering herself to take on that risk?

Without saying much more Hermione held out her hand and Rae grasped both it and her bag tightly. They arrived just in front of the Burrow and now being out of the public-sector Hermione and Ron proceeded to fill her in on the details they could gather on the attack and Malfoy's recovery while they made their way to the door. The details admittedly, left many questions unanswered and had several plot holes so far as Rae was concerned. Ron explained grumpily how Malfoy had regained consciousness throughout the past few days but had apparently been increasingly angry and uncooperative. He also confirmed that Malfoy was easily fatigued although Hermione had cleared up most of his superficial wounds, a few more severe injuries kept him minimally active.

"Where is the rest of your family Ron? Shouldn't they be home?" Rae asked as they stepped inside.

"Charlie had invited them to come to Romania earlier this week. Thought it might do 'em some good to get out of the Burrow for a bit. Being here certainly wasn't helping George any," Ron said, his voice suddenly becoming much quieter as memories began to fill his eyes.

Raven stopped on their way up the stairs, "For what it's worth Ron, I truly am sorry for all you've lost." Ron only nodded. Rae understood that for now that was all he was capable of. Hermione saw Ron starting to become emotional and in a practiced manor redirected the conversation to easier topics. Malfoy.

At this point they got to the bedroom door and Rae listened but couldn't hear a thing. "The room is silenced," Hermione provided, "He's not exactly the quiet type when he's pissed."

They stepped into the room then and as hard as she tried to school her reaction, she couldn't help the quiet gasp she let escape. Neither Ron nor Hermione ever heard it. Draco lay on the bed looking paler than his usual tone and his face was sunken in like he hadn't eaten or slept in weeks. His face was covered in fading bruises which left a purple and yellow reminder of the violence he endured. If his face looked this bad she could hardly imagine the rest of him, which was hidden under a long sleeved shirt. He was asleep at the moment which worked out just fine for Raven as she catalogued all she could about his current state and what she would need to do to get him back on his feet.

She slowly moved forward leaving Hermione and Ron at the door. Harry who had been sitting at a desk in the room stood and greeted her. She continued moving toward the bed. As she took a seat by Draco's knees she heard the 'pop' of someone apparating into the room. With a practiced swiftness the war had taught her she had stood, drawn her wand and thrown up a silent _protego_ in seconds. After scanning the room and not seeing anyone new she looked down following the eyes of Harry Potter. He chuckled just slightly as Raven's eyes finally met the intruder's. A house elf named Nalby.

"Will this be the new miss taking care of master Draco?" Nalby asked no one in particular.

Raven dropped her shield and sheathed her wand but remained standing. "Yes," she answered the elf.

"Wonderful! My name be Nalby and I would like to know where we is going. I have many things to arrange for the young master before our trip," Nalby stated. Raven looked up surprised no one had mentioned Nalby to her, and it simply wouldn't be possible to take him along. There were far too many muggles around to risk having a house elf make an untimely appearance. Judging by the shared look of confusion in the eyes of her peers, Raven figured they had not thought of this scenario in the short time they had to prepare.

Raven knelt down in order to be more level with the elf. "It's nice to meet you Nalby. My name is Raven. I am going to be taking care of Draco, but unfortunately I can only take Draco with me," at this declaration Nalby looked both hurt and confused. Having spent much time with the elves in Hogwarts, however, and asking them about themselves, Raven knew quite a bit about how to work with one, though she didn't know if a Malfoy elf would prove more challenging. Before the elf had time to respond Rae added, "But that doesn't mean I don't need your help with taking care of him. I know several things I need your help with doing right here."

The elf seemed to consider this but wasn't entirely convinced not to freak out yet. "What things?" He asked.

"Well for one I'll need a few of Draco's things packed for him before we can go and I do need it done quickly as we're scheduled to leave this evening. Also, I imagine many folks are going to assume he's been killed considering all that's happened," with this statement Nalby's eyes began to fill with tears as though the thought of losing Draco hurt as much as actually losing him would. "Because of that I'm going to need someone on the front here to keep an eye on his home and accounts."

"Nalby cannot touch the accounts!" Nalby whisper yelled as though they were conspiring to rob the Queen. Nalby was nearly in hysterics, and Rae just hoped Draco was a heavy sleeper if the elf did become frantic.

"No, no Nalby! Don't do anything with the vaults! I just need you to make sure no one else touches them, or tries to. Can you do that for me? And make sure that Malfoy manor is in good condition when we return with Draco before school begins? I'm just asking that you keep an eye out for anyone trying any funny business around Draco's belongings or home. None of us can do these things. But you can, can't you?" Raven said this both genuinely meaning it, and hoping it appeased the elf from the anxiety of being separated from Draco. Nalby could be their surveillance at the manor and report to Hermione, Ron and Harry if anything were amiss. Hermione knew how to owl her, and after today, she would have what she needed to email her.

"Yes mistress, Nalby won't let you down!" The little elf saluted and disappeared with a 'pop'. She was confused with his using 'mistress' as her title but was pleased enough that he seemed to be pacified for the time being.

"Well handled," Harry said looking pleasantly surprised by the exchange. "We haven't been able to convince him to be as cooperative yet! He was determined to stay with Malfoy. How'd you do it?"

"House Elves are fundamentally built to be needed. They have a nurturing quality to them as well as a desire to be useful. As long as Nalby knows that what he is being asked to do is most directly beneficial to Draco then he'll comply. Only Draco telling him otherwise would change his mind now," looking beside her at a surprisingly still sleeping Malfoy she added, "I don't intend to give him the chance to do that." She turned back to the group collected in the middle of the room. "Is he usually such a heavy sleeper?"

"He's got a sleeping draught on board. He needed the rest and honestly," Harry looked at Ron and Hermione, "so did we."

As Harry said this, Draco began to wake from his sleep but was still groggy in the fading darkness. Something smelled wonderful though, fragrant like a spring day and a warm cup of tea. It was a comforting sort of smell… "smells good…" he mumbled.

The other four inhabitants of the room all turned their heads from their conversation to look at the injured Draco Malfoy. Not realizing he had said what he said out loud Draco finally opened his eyes and met a pair of hazel eyes he couldn't recall having met before. He stared for a moment before picking up on the fact that the wonderdoofs were watching him. Falling back into the habit of trying to cover up weakness with snark he uttered, "Who in the bloody hell are you," all the while aware of the fact that he'd be screwed without them. He just hated that he now owed them even more. He was losing count of the tally sheet on his soul. Draco – 0 Golden Trio – 4,316,513.

"Well, gee, nice seeing you too." She said. Her voice was both familiar and foreign and he couldn't pinpoint why. "Call me Rae."

Later that night they had Draco upright and dressed in a set of muggle black denim jeans and dark blue long sleeve button down shirt. His bag in the corner next to hers ready to leave. Nalby had gotten him several sets of clothes both casual and formal (because only a Malfoy elf would think to pack formal clothes for going into hiding). The clothes that were packed were muggle clothes, as Rae had explained to Nalby where they'd be going he wouldn't need any wizarding clothes. Nalby did put Malfoy's personal change purse in his travel bag, which had enough galleons to keep a family of four fed for a year, and a few other personal items, but all and all Draco didn't seem to have much that his elf thought worthy of taking.

Draco still looked pretty beat up so being that Charms had been her second favorite class Rae put a few well practiced glamour charms over Draco's bruises so that he at least wouldn't draw the eye of concerned citizens, or police. Being as vain as he was, Draco surprisingly, did not complain all that much, once he got past the initial refusal to let a stranger near him with a wand pointed at his face. Draco was very anxious being without a way to defend himself. Hermione had given Rae Draco's wand, which she had held onto after his original arrival to the Burrow. Rae kept it in her bag for safekeeping and Hermione figured she would give it back to him when, or if, she ever trusted him enough to do so.

Draco and Rae held onto to each of their bags and a portion of the comb that had been made into a portkey and waited for the pull that would land them at their destination. Rae waved goodbye to her friends just before it activated and would bring them to an alleyway in Canada just a block or two down the road from a car rental facility. Draco only rolled his eyes before they were pulled from the Burrow, the lack of a sneer, Harry knew, was as close to thanks as they may ever get from Malfoy.

Once landing at their destination and taking a moment to find their centers again Rae looked at Draco, "We're going to have to walk about two blocks from here and then we'll rent a car. Is that ok? Or do you need to stay here, and I'll come back for you?" Rae asked. The idea of walking 3 steps had him exhausted already but Malfoy would be damned if he was going to be left alone, in a strange alley, without his wand. He also wasn't going to give anything away about how truly weak he felt right now.

"I'll manage." He said curtly and started walking the direction she indicated.

They made it to the rental facility a little while later. It had been slow going but to Raven's credit she never commented on Draco's speed simply fell into step beside him. When they got there, she told him to sit on the bench outside while she went in and handled to dealership representative. Since he could see her through the glass window and he was already exhausted he didn't argue, and took a seat.

Rae went inside and rented the car with her fake ID. There were very few facilities that allowed you to rent a car and drive it into another country. She had used this car service before as this is how she usually got home. She was very protective of her home and family which is why she couldn't for the life of her explain her compulsion to bring Draco Malfoy there.

When she came out and walked with Draco to the car she had rented he looked at it and raised one incredibly aristocratic eyebrow at her, "Is this thing even safe?" He asked. It hadn't occurred to her until that moment that he may never have driven in a car before.

"Reasonably." Was all she would provide him. She wouldn't lie and say yes, but she wouldn't freak him out with statistics on fatal v non-fatal car accidents. He seemed to nod and get in the passenger seat. Rae climbed in as well and started it up. This seemed to be the first thing that truly spooked Draco because he jumped and breathed just a little shallower, but then managed to mask it just as swiftly. Again, Raven didn't comment. It wouldn't do to pick on him or to make him feel even more out of place than he did. She wanted him to find comfort if not happiness and she hoped that eventually he would learn to trust, if not her than someone, but the first step would be showing him it was possible. With that thought clouding her mind she put the car in gear and pulled onto the highway heading for home.


	3. Chapter 3

CHAPTER 3

 _This is taking forever. How do muggles ever get where they need to go? Why the fuck is this thing so loud? Who the hell is this witch? This is stupid. If I wouldn't be a dead man in England, then I would have told them all to shove off._ Draco was feeling incredibly uncomfortable and increasingly irritated. Rae hadn't said a word, instead choosing to wait for Draco to open the floor. She had never been much of a talker anyway. There was something peaceful about quiet car rides, especially at night when there weren't many other cars on the road and you could take in the sky and the world around you. That peace, however, hadn't lasted as long as she hoped, but was no longer than she expected.

"Where are we going?" Draco asked her. His tone was similar to that of a child being brought to an aunt, or uncle's, house they had no interest in visiting.

"My house," she answered. She intended to keep her answers short and sweet, so he'd have less ammunition to spiral into anger with.

"Where is that?" to Draco's credit, not knowing this witch, and being at her mercy, were keeping him fairly polite. Even if it was strained he was determined to feel her out before throwing his weight around which was his usual go-to.

"It's about another 5 hours south of here," she informed him. At this news, Draco sat straight up, flinching at the abrupt pain in his left side but ignoring it, turned his body to look at her.

"We're not going to be there for 5 hours!?" His voice started to rise in both volume and indignation. So much for playing it cool.

"Yes," she answered only briefly turning to look at him before turning her focus back to the road.

"What the fuck am I supposed to do for 5 hours?" he asked. At this Rae chuckled.

"I don't know. Whatever you want. Read a book, sulk, take a nap, it's up to you really," she looked over to him briefly out of the corner of her eye, "On a serious note, though, why don't you try and get some sleep? You look tired and I'm sure your body could use it."

Draco huffed, "My body's fine." Draco slowly returned to a normal sitting position, his aching ribs thanking him, and crossed his arms petulantly while he thought. It hadn't escaped his attention that for as much information as she provided, which was none at all, she still hadn't said exactly where they were or where they were going. He also was trying to work out her accent. Something about the way she spoke was clearly English but also… clearly not. He was not even in the realm of trusting her, especially since he still couldn't say where he knew her from. "So, what happens now?" He asked.

"In regards to…?" Rae asked. She wanted him to be specific about what answers he wanted. As she was sure she would be hard pressed to get a straight answer out of him – ever -she certainly was going to make him work just as hard for any information he wanted.

"In regards to me. Am I your prisoner? Have I been kidnapped? Where is my wand? Where are we going? Will we ever return? Do you expect me to follow rules? You know, what. Now?" he ground out without looking at her, clearly indicating he wanted a layout of what to expect. He was also hoping she'd say where his wand was, so he could work on a plan to steal it back.

Rae sighed but gave in and started to answer as many of his questions as she could remember. "Most of the same rules apply now as they did several days ago. You are still on house arrest you are simply on _my house_ arrest," at this Draco again huffed but didn't comment. He thought it was stupid that he'd have to remain prisoner in some dirty muggle dwelling until he could find his wand. "I have not kidnapped you, and I imagine if you thought you were being kidnapped you would have put up more of a fight leaving, but being that you're in Slytherin you clearly recognized that it was in your best interest to come with me," she said playing on his pride for his house. "I have your wand. It's perfectly safe. Don't worry," Like hell he wouldn't worry. "As I've mentioned we're going to my home, and will return to England for school whenever Headmistress McGonagall believes the castle to be in proper order again. I do have a few rules I'd ask you to adhere to but we can talk about those later. They are nothing extraordinary or outrageous, honestly I think most would be common sense," she finished, "Have I missed anything?" She turned now to look at the petulant man sitting next to her. If looks could kill this rental car would have a crater where the glove box used to be.

"I want my wand," he said turning his most hateful glare at her. Maybe she would crumble and just offer it up.

She only lifted one perfect eyebrow before responding, "No."

Well it was worth a shot. But at her blatant refusal he became indignant. "What the fuck do you mean NO!? You have no right to keep my wand from me! Even on house arrest for being a bloody Death Eater I was allowed to have my wand! Who the bloody hell do you think you are!?" His chest heaved with the energy it took to throw his tantrum, but he was full of adrenaline. Malfoys always got what they wanted, and he wanted his wand like he wanted his next breath.

Rae listened as he shot accusation after accusation at her. She showed no outward expression or reaction to his eruption. When a few seconds had passed and all that could be heard was the sound of his heavy breathing she asked, "Are you finished?" She turned her head briefly to look him in the eye which was full of hate. Her tone and her face remained calm and neutral.

"Okay, good. Now first of all," she paused to test if he was truly done ranting, "calm the fuck down. I have every intention of giving you your wand back. I have my reasons as to why it will not be now-"

"What reasons?" He interrupted.

Rae held her hand up at him. "I let you say what you wanted to say. I will expect you to extend the same courtesy to me." She looked pointedly at him making it clear he was not to interrupt her again. "The first reason is because you are about to be around far more muggles than you have probably ever experienced before. It would be unnerving to anyone, and understanding how you were raised," Draco flinched at her insinuation but didn't let it show on his face, "it will be even more so, for you. Simply put, I don't need you doing something stupid, under my supervision, to violate the statue of secrecy. Secondly, we don't know if anyone is trying to track your magic. Your magical signature is familiar to far too many people who would rather you be dead," again she made a good point and again Draco flinched, "Hopefully, those people aren't even looking for you and assume you're already dead but until I know for sure I won't risk putting my home, or family at risk. Period." Again, she looked pointedly at him, daring him to challenge her. If nothing else Draco could admit that he respected her for her steadfast protection of her family. Draco knew a little too well to what lengths people would go to keep their loved ones safe and he knew that in her eyes, his life was not worth theirs. He couldn't blame her. And hell, he'd failed in his effort, maybe being this much of a hard ass is what had helped her keep hers safe when his wasn't.

Rae was not finished with her explanation quite yet, "And lastly, you are in no condition to be doing magic." Draco opened his mouth to respond to the last accusation but was cut off. "No. Don't argue with me. You're not. Your body is beat to shit and you are exhausted. It doesn't benefit you to waste any of your energy doing superfluous magic. You're doing a very good job, Draco Malfoy, at not letting on to how tired you are or how much pain you're in, but I am not stupid. I see the way you flinch when we hit a bump in the road, or your breathing hitches when your ribs ache." Draco flushed at this, he didn't think she'd been paying such close attention to him while her eyes had been on the road. He was glad for the dark of night to hide the last shred of dignity he had left.

Rae softened her voice. "I have no intention of keeping you prisoner Draco," he was surprised at how comfortably she used his first name. "I want to keep you safe. But I need you to be cooperative to do that." She looked to Draco, who had now turned to look out the window at the passing grasslands. "I will give you your wand back. You have my word. But please, trust me to do so when it's safe."

"What reason do I have to trust you?" He asked, seeming to have lost his fight but willing to try and remain callous at least a little while longer.

"Because I've had several opportunities to kill you in the past couple hours and haven't. How many people do you know could say that Draco?" As much as he hated to admit it she was right. So, while he didn't trust her in the sense that he was going to start spilling all of his deepest secrets to her. He was forced to believe she didn't truly have it out for him. At least not the way most people did nowadays. He was curious about the witch. He hesitated before looking over at her while her eyes were focused forward.

She was small maybe only about 5'2" in height. She had a tan complexion like she spent a lot of time outside and long straight black hair that stopped at about the middle of her waist. Her arms and legs seemed well toned under the form fitting clothes she wore. He had noticed earlier at the weasel's house that while she had a small waist she had distinguishable hips and curves in all the right places. Her legs had seemed thicker than they should be for a woman of her size but more in the sense that she spent 20 hours a day on a broomstick. Her eyes were large for her face and seemed to change color with her mood. Her lips were full and never gave anything away that they didn't intend to. Satisfied with his evaluation of his guard he lay his head against the window of the car and watched the world blow by trying to pretend he was on a broom. It was hard though without the feel of the wind blowing past him.

Rae let the left side of her mouth perk up into a sly grin. She had noticed his evaluation of her and let him take inventory as she had done to him earlier while he slept. She was sure that she was not at all what he expected, as she usually wasn't, once people got to know her. She was glad though that if nothing else she had succeeded in making him curious. Curiosity, was a deceivingly powerful motivator, someone who is curious is open to learning and that's exactly what she needed from him. She hoped to teach him a lot of things this summer about muggles, life, and himself. She had noticed the inconsistencies in his behavior a long time ago and she had to admit… she was certainly curious about him.

She was surprised to hear his voice again as he asked, "So, who are you? You seem familiar?"

She smiled fully now and glanced at him. It was the first time she met his eyes that he didn't seem like he was trying to wandlessly kill her. Instead he seemed incredibly neutral. "My name is Raven Bell Hanson," she said brightly.

"That's and incredibly American name…" Draco drawled, looking away bored.

"You're right," she replied with a grin. Draco looked back at her surprised. _Are we in America? Why the hell would we come here? Oh Merlin! Not only am I going to be living with muggles, and this WONDERFUL conversationalist, but I am going to be in fucking America. What the bloody hell else could happen?_

"So we're in America then?" Draco asked dreading the answer.

"Yes," Rae answered.

"Care to tell me where in America? It's a big bloody country," he asked feeling his ire rise once more at her evasiveness.

"You're not the patient sort are you Draco Malfoy?" She asked. He couldn't figure out why she said his whole name rather than one or the other. She'd done it before this evening. What more, he couldn't quite figure out why it didn't bother him as much as it should.

"Not particularly," he said, "Not tonight. So then if you're American, why do you speak with an English accent? Where did you go to school?"

"I went to Hogwarts," she stated like it was the answer to all the questions in the universe rather than the creator of them.

"What year?" he asked.

"Yours," she still hadn't taken her eyes off the road since he'd started this line of questioning but the small smile gracing her lips never left. She was either incredibly happy he was taking an interest, or thrilled to be driving him batty with her minimal effort answers.

"I'm confused," he said, turning to face her, "If you live in America why aren't you attending Ilvermorny? And how do I not know you? I mean it explains your mixed accent, but… why?"

She chuckled at him. His confusion was the same as everyone else's when they found out she wasn't a local student. "I grew up here in America and attended Ilvermorny my first year of school. While I was there I did research on my own heritage and found out that I had ancestors that would have gone to Hogwarts. In an effort to learn about my family, and myself, I asked the Headmasters of both schools if I could transfer. That's why I wasn't a part of your sorting class. I didn't start at Hogwarts until our second year, but I've remained there ever since. I imagine my 'mixed accent,' as you call it, is a result of spending 9 months out of the year at Hogwarts and the remainder of my time here at home." Draco sat back and listened. For once her answer actually filled in a lot of blanks for him. He did catch one piece of important information though that he wanted clarified.

"So, you're muggle-born then?" Draco asked.

"As a matter of fact, I am," Rae said. She wasn't surprised that he had filled in the blanks. Any pure-blood family, and most half-blood wizards wouldn't need to learn about their heritage. They would already know it.

"So, you're telling me, that you are bringing me – Draco Malfoy – convicted Death Eater, wanted dead by everyone who fought on either side of the war, to the home of your muggle parents? Are they aware of who I am? Of who you're bringing home to share their meals?" He asked astounded. He would never tell her that he was actually terrified of being the reason why anyone else died.

"Not quite," Rae said. Draco noticed her demeanor change and he was surprised to find that he almost missed the bubbly girl from before to the woman who sat across from him now. This woman was weighed down by heavy thoughts and emotions. He couldn't quite stand bubbly, but being reminded of the gravity the war caused was far more uncomfortable. Looking at her now, he regretted asking the questions that moments ago had been so easy to ask. "My parents died. Years ago," Rae clarified, not daring to take her eyes off the road. She was young when they died but she still remembered that day vividly, "It's my Nana's property we'll be staying on. And yes, she is well aware of who you are and what baggage you carry."

Draco wanted to ask what happened to her parents but refrained. It clearly still pained her, and at the same time he was caught up in the memory of the battle that had cost him his mother. His father, he grieved for, but truly he didn't feel any more emotion for him than common familiarity.

His mother though, was the only person who had ever put him first, and who truly loved him. In turn, she had been the only person he could freely say he'd felt love for. No one else knew this, and he'd never say but he hadn't been apparated out of the room before he saw the _Avada_ curse leave Dolohov's wand. He'd seen it. He feared he would never unsee it, the way she had fallen, protecting him. For that reason, he remained awake, and quiet, for the remainder of the drive.

In the seat next to him, Rae was thinking very similarly. She only briefly reflected on her own parents before she thought about Draco. She was curious as to how he was actually handling his parents' death. He seemed outwardly fine now, but cold and standoffish had always been his M.O. After she considered his emotional health for a while her thoughts looked forward to how this summer may turn out. She ran through 1,010 scenarios, good and bad, and honestly, still had no idea what she thought she was doing taking this on. She just knew that he needed at least one person to give him a chance and there might not be anyone else who would.

Her thoughts remained in this fashion until they turned to pull into home. The sign at the end of the drive read 'Welcome to Tanith Ranch.' When she was young she had tried to help her father repaint the sign and she had mixed most of the colors at the bottom of one of the posts. That bright yellow, misplaced streak was the most calming, and grounding, sight in the world. That was until she heard a quiet, "What the fuck?" being asked from the passenger seat.

He had said it quietly, not intending for her to hear it, but she had, there wasn't much she didn't hear. She had to suppress the smile and chuckle wanting to escape. When he'd asked earlier if there was anything else she wanted to tell him she had weighed her options and decided to wait and see his reaction to her home. Now she knew she had been right. His reaction was priceless. Not only was he living with muggles, but with muggles in America, and on a ranch. Finally, she couldn't resist laughing at his expression as they drove up the long driveway to the main house, and to Nana. This was going to be great!


	4. Chapter 4

A/N: I apologize for my delay in writing this story, life took over for a while but I always had this in the back of my mind. I very much intend to continue with this story and hope you will continue to enjoy the rest of it. Please r&r and I will do my best to update regularly!

CHAPTER 4

The ranch was situated on a beautiful piece of land. There were just short of 2,000 acres of rolling grassland, creeks, and a small patch of woods which remained untouched at the furthest edge of the property. The family home sat proudly, and prominently, at the entrance of the ranch closest to town, just at the end of the long and winding, unpaved driveway. The home was three stories high, though now that Nana was getting older, she predominantly used just the first floor. Rae often used the second as her own when she was home, and the third was mostly storage. The exterior of the house was a faded color that may, at one time, have been a bright yellow, before the dust of the farm settled on the walls. There were a few gardens that provided vegetables and fruit for the home, but not in excess being that this was not a crop farm.

Just behind the home were a few barns, one larger than the rest, a group of pens used for the horses, cattle, and chickens, and a series of lodges that were most often used when some of the ranch hands needed to stay overnight for one reason or another. It was in two of these lodges that Draco and Rae would be spending the remainder of their summer. Even though she usually stayed in the home, Nana urged her to take up residence in the nearest lodge so that, should Draco have any problems, or questions, he wouldn't be intimidated by entering the home of the "resident muggle," as Nana happily proclaimed herself to be.

As Rae and Draco pulled up to the house Rae could feel Draco tensing. He had felt the wards around the property and could tell that they were strong. This made him uneasy. Strong wards meant a strong witch had to have made them. Considering he only knew of one that was here, and he didn't know her all that well, he kept himself quiet though he was uncomfortable, and itched to ask the questions that were flying through his mind.

Rae noticed no outward signs of his discomfort but something in the air around him changed. She could tell that he did not like being here. He was furious, and she could sense it even though his face was blank and his fingers appeared relaxed in his lap. He thought about how he was being wrenched from him childhood home - not that he very much liked being there, but it was familiar at least - and shipped to a farm in the middle of muggle America. He was being stripped of all his servants and fortune and prominence and sent to a farm. It was dirty and smelled, and exactly as he always imagined a muggle home would be.

Rae sat quietly taking in the sullen, brooding form that was Draco Malfoy. She noticed that his jaw clenched as he took in his surroundings but made no effort to comment. She was sure that if she had the power to read minds his would be throwing every curse he could think of her way. Thank Merlin he didn't know wandless magic - at least that she knew of.

Rae parked the car and began to get out. She walked around to his side of the car and leaned against the back waiting for Draco to climb out. It took some time, but after about 5 minutes of deciding if he would rather go back to England and take his chances, he figured that this truly was the last place anyone would think to look for him. He hated to admit it, but his slytherin instincts told him this was the best move. His pureblood instincts screamed in protest. They would have to go kick stones, the pureblood ways hadn't done him any favors so far in his life, why should he listen to them now. Maybe he could just be a hermit the whole summer and hide from the grime and poverty.

Draco took a deep breath and let himself out of the vehicle. He tried as hard as he could to keep his features blank about both the accommodations and the stiffness he was feeling through his whole body. Rae grabbed both of their bags from the trunk of the car and Draco was quick to take his from her. He instinctively reached out for her bag as well being that a gentleman never let a lady carry her own bag and, for all their faults, his parents had raised him to be a gentleman, though in this moment he hadn't meant to be. They both seemed shocked at his uncharacteristic gesture. Nevertheless, Rae let him take the bag from her, and he was too proud to hand it back.

He followed her towards the entrance of the home until they reached the stairs leading up to the wrap around porch. She turned to him and said, "Nana is bound to be in the sunroom with breakfast. We'll go there to eat, and speak with her, then I will show you where you'll be staying."

Draco hesitated, he hated to seem interested, but he had to ask. "Does she know?" He was alluding to his history and who was being invited to share her meal.

Rae understood perfectly what he was alluding to, "She knows all about witches and wizards and where I actually attend school. She will be the only one, though, of all the people you meet here, that does." Rae decided not to specifically say anything about his past. Nana would handle that hurdle on her own, if she chose to handle it. She figured at this point in time, with Draco, less would be more, at least until he became more comfortable.

Draco didn't push because, again, he didn't want to seem interested. But he was. He couldn't fathom why. Perhaps it was because, so far, Rae had been anything but what he expected and hadn't answered a single question the way he wanted. She was infuriating but also fascinating and he hated that. He didn't want to know her, he didn't want to learn about her muggles, he didn't want to look around her home, he didn't want to want to. But he did.

When she opened the door to her home, he stopped dead in his tracks. He knew that smell. Honey and Magnolias. It was Rae. He had smelled that waking up the night before. It had to be why she was familiar to him. He didn't know her face or her voice. But he knew her smell. He would catch a bit of it every now and then in Hogwarts. He was even more confused now about why he was here and why she smelled so good.

She noticed that he stopped and assumed that it was an aversion to the muggle home, but she could never have known his thoughts at that moment. She gestured for him to come on and he managed to snap out of his haze and follow. They walked down a hallway past an office on the left that was tastefully decorated in dark earth tones, and a few, clearly, masculine touches. There was a sitting room to the right which had a small outdated TV in the corner. Draco didn't even acknowledge the out of date technology because he had no idea what it was. They made it past the staircase which was situated slightly to the left immediately in front of them. There was nothing spectacular about it. It was certainly not the grande entrance that the Manor was known for.

They made it to the kitchen, and it was clear that this was where the most expense was spent. The kitchen was beautiful. It had cream color cabinets that appeared to be the original cabinets, in pristine condition, stainless steel appliances, and a granite countertop with creams and browns that swirled and ebbed together without being overly 'busy.' The walls were tasteful, light cream as well, with a light and hunter green color backsplash and exposed wooden beams along the ceiling. A large Island in the middle with a deep farm sink rounded everything out. Just past the kitchen was the sunroom where Nana was sitting at the picnic table with three places set.

Rae gestured to a stool by the counter where Draco could put their bags down and waited for him before going into the sunroom. Rae walked confidently through the screen door that separated the area and strode to her grandmother to give her a hug. Draco could see the comfortable familiarity the two shared. Theirs was a shared mutual respect, rather than an expectation for it.

Draco lingered by the door waiting for directions and taking in his surroundings. The view from this room was beautiful, it made him think of his mother's gardens which were visible from his room at the manor. It was the only part of the manor that wasn't tainted for him. Even though the views were polar opposites, it gave him the same kind of feeling. He broke out of his reverie when Nana began walking toward him. She held her hand out to him and waited.

He took it and was surprised at the strength of the handshake coming from an old woman. Nana smiled warmly and then gripped his hand tighter pulling him toward the wooden table set up for their meal. "Come on young man and have a seat. We have a lot to talk about and I'm sure you are both tired. Rae, I want you to know that I got Benny to come over and cover your chores for today so you could rest and help Draco here, get settled," she said while planting Draco on the bench on the far side of the picnic style table. He was surprised when Rae walked over and sat next to him rather than her grandmother. He had definitely expected this to be more of an interrogation rather than an actual breakfast. He'd been planning his brooding demeanor since they started up the driveway, and once again Rae had managed to put him off balance with something very simple.

"Thank you, Nana. I appreciate that. It was a very long drive," Rae was very tired. Even though she had gotten used to long nights with her experience during the war, when that night was over she needed to catch up.

Nana just chuckled as she began filling her plate, "Don't thank me dear, I'm sure Benny will let you know how you can pay him back."

At this Rae chuckled too. Rae began filling her plate as well, gesturing for Draco to do the same. He had yet to even speak since entering the house but Rae was tired and hungry and wasn't going to force him. She knew that he was uncomfortable. Rae instead thought about how Benny might get her back. Benny had been working with them for a long time at this ranch and had a habit of getting into trouble that Rae always managed to pull him out of. Benny was always happy to help, but always managed to get even.

It was then that Nana turned her eyes to Draco. He was pulling apart a piece of toast, staring at it as though it was the reason for everything bad in the world. "Draco," he looked up at her in surprise, "Eat something. Your body needs fuel to be able to heal." He was instantly on the defensive, for some reason he didn't expect her to know he'd been hurt, and he still hated the fact that he had been, so the reminder pissed him off.

"Who said I need to heal?" He asked quietly and steadily.

Nana was not put off in the least by his less than glamorous attitude. She'd raised a son and knew how moody they could get when life reminded them that they weren't invincible. "No one had to tell me. You're favoring your right side and you were stiff sitting down at the table. I've a lot of years on this planet and I've spent the entirety of it on a ranch. I know what rib and back injuries look like. Don't insult me by arguing otherwise."

Draco closed his mouth. He had planned on telling her to shove it but was otherwise unsure of how to do so. His father would be mortified. But honestly his father could go shove it too. Draco stayed quiet and returned to glaring at his plate, he didn't eat a lot but Nana was pleased when she saw him nibble at the corner of his toast. When they had finished eating in a silence that wasn't entirely uncomfortable, at least Rae and her grandmother seemed fine, Nana cleared her throat.

Draco looked up again and Rae did the same. Nana looked pointedly at Draco and began speaking, "Draco, I just want to go over a few things before I let you both go get some rest." Draco nodded his head for her to continue.

"This is a working ranch. I don't expect you to do any chores, or work around the ranch, but if you do see anything you would like to do, or learn about, you are more than welcome to do so. I just ask that you respect our home and don't interrupt that work that needs to be done. This is how we make a living." Again Draco nodded and admitted to himself that he was glad that they weren't going to try to force him to work. He didn't have the energy to lose his temper, and it would be a cold day in hell before worked the farm. Merlin, just the word made him cringe.

Nana continued, "You will have your own space. Rae will show you to it in a little bit. I also want you to know that this door is always open. If you need anything like food, clothes or somewhere to hide out from the rain when you get caught in it, you can always come here. That front door is never locked by key or magic."

Draco was surprised at her acceptance and again wondered if Rae had told her the whole truth about him. Surely she wasn't just blindly allowing an ex-death eater unlimited access to her home? He didn't have time to think too long about it because Nana had one last thing to say, "The only other thing Draco besides taking care of yourself, I ask you not endanger Rae." For a moment, Draco thought 'aha!' there it was, there was the judgement, but then she continued, "From what Rae tells me you're not often around muggles and I would hate for her to get in trouble because of some slip of the tongue that a muggle shouldn't hear, or simple magic they shouldn't see. Besides Rae, and myself, no one else in this town knows about magic. So I ask that you be conscious in the things you do, and say, not to give yourself, or my Rae, away."

Draco was once again stumped. He just couldn't understand how they were so calm about him and who he was. He hoped like hell that they were done. His head was spinning, he was tired, he was sore and all he wanted was to go to bed. He nodded and with his acknowledgment they all began to get up from the table. Rae began to help clear the table but Nana stopped her. "You two go get some rest. I've got all day to worry about the table."

Rae smiled and continued to clear her spot until Nana came to take the items from her hand. "Go," Nana gently commanded.

"Fine," Rae conceded.

Nana leaned into Rae's ear to whisper when Draco went to get his bag, "He's not very talkative, is he?"

Rae chuckled and whispered back, "Give it time. Wait until he has the energy to throw his temper around, then you'll remember today and wish you were here again."

Nana giggled again, "Try me."

It wasn't long after that that Rae and Draco were making their way behind the house toward the lodging area. Unit #1 was to be Rae's personal lodge until school returned, and Unit #2 would be Draco's. Most nights the whole set of lodging remained empty, they would fill up though when calving season came around, or while they were preparing for a roundup. She walked first to Draco's cabin and let them in. "This is your space. No one else will stay here while you're here," Rae told him and turned to hand him the key on a chain that could easily fit around his neck. "I know you're uncomfortable without your wand to put up wards, so this is the only key. When you lock the door no one else will be able to get in. I'm the only one with magic to unlock it but unless you needed me to, I would never come into your space without knocking first."

Draco took the key from her and put it on the counter. He didn't know what to say, or do. He didn't know what was expected in this situation. Rae was unphased though and continued her tour of the small lodge. "This is the kitchen, there's probably quite a bit in here you won't know how to use because it's muggle stuff but I can show you all of that in time. Nana stocked both of our kitchens for us, and she put some clothes in the wardrobe in the bedroom. I told her you may or may not like them but she insisted. They're clothes that are a little more practical for living on a ranch." At Draco's raised eyebrow she chuckled and said, "Don't worry, there are no overalls, but there are a few pair of jeans, some button ups and undershirts, long and short sleeved."

Rae started into the bathroom to show him how to work the shower since he couldn't just magic the water to work and afterward she started making her way to the door. "Alright I'm beat, and I know you're exhausted, so go get some rest and let me know if you need anything. I'm in this lodge right here," she indicated to the neighboring building just a few feet away, "My door is always open to you as well Draco Malfoy." When he didn't respond she added, "I hope you know that what I said in the car is true. I've no intention of keeping you prisoner Draco, only of keeping you safe. I know this place is like hell on earth for you because of where you come from, but I think if you keep an open mind, while you may not like it, you may find that there are worse things."

Rae turned to leave but before she could Draco stopped her. He quietly asked, "Rae?" She turned to look at him, curious about why he stopped her, and hating just a little bit that she liked that he had said her name. Draco hesitated for a moment and seemed to be wrestling with himself. Finally, a very quiet, almost forced "Thank you" made it passed his lips.

Rae smiled but made sure to keep it tame so she didn't spook him, "You're welcome, Draco." With that she turned to leave so she could get some much needed rest and smiled when she heard his door lock behind her.


	5. Chapter 5

CHAPTER 5

Rae woke up around 2 in the afternoon. The sun was high and Merlin was it hot! She was quick to jump in the shower to cool off and change into something more suitable for a warm day. She put on a pair of light wash denim jeans and a plain black cami. She took her long dark hair and piled it high on her head. She loved to wear her hair down as often as possible, but some days were just too humid. She very much admired the long, thick black hair she inherited from her mother, though.

She went into the kitchen and made herself some coffee and a sandwich. As she sat down she thought about Draco. Now that she was in a mindset to be able to analyze his behavior, she thought back to how he had acted from the very start. She could see certain tendencies which were clearly slytherin, and some that were clearly Malfoy. She could tell that he was remaining quiet in many cases purely out of that self preservation instinct that had kept him alive so far. Other times, she could read how clearly analytical and often pompous he could be. She giggled wondering how he'd manage to make lunch for himself without a house elf. She considered bringing him a sandwich over but realized that as comfortable as she wanted him to be here, she also wanted him to be somewhat self reliant. She wasn't a servant and did not want to give him the impression she would be one for him.

When she finished she quickly cleaned her dishes, threw on her boots, and headed outside. She wandered to the stable where her Quarter Horse, Sota, would be waiting. He was a big boy, about 16 hands, and had a shimmering coat that was such a rich dark brown it looked black in some places. She made it to Sota's stall and the stallion winnyed in greeting when he saw her. "Hello love," she said while petting his cheek, "Do you want to get out of here for a bit?" Sota huffed and stomped in response. A clear 'yes' to Rae. "Alright, but it's hot out today, so we're not going far." Rae grabbed his reins and fit them over his head. She led him out of the stall and climbed up to ride him bareback. If she were working she would have saddled him, but today they were just out for a leisurely ride and a saddle would only make him hotter.

Sota led her out of the barn and together they went to one of Rae's favorite spots on the ranch. It's where she went to think when her life, or the memories she tried to bury, became overwhelming. As Sota picked up speed, sailing across the field, Rae reached up to let her hair out of its ties. The breeze from their run kept her cool enough and she loved the feel of the wind in her hair. She let out a peel of laughter, letting go of some of the stress she had felt since receiving Hermione's letter days ago, and Sota whinnied in reply.

Draco woke up stiff and sore in an unfamiliar bed. It took him a moment to become oriented with where he was, and as the past few days replayed behind his eyes, he groaned. What the hell was he supposed to do for the next several months? He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and threw his legs over the side of the bed. When Rae had showed him how to use the shower earlier he had showered right then so that he wouldn't risk forgetting later when he really needed one. When he had finished with showering he felt so relieved and the hot water helped to soothe his aching muscles. He fell right into bed with out more than his boxers on. When he began to get ready for whatever the day would bring (unsure as he was he did not want to be unsuspecting in his underwear) he saw that the lodge closet had been stocked with some horrid muggle farm clothes in his size. He had to admit someone had put effort into picking a color scheme that would suit him noticing the blacks, greys, blues and greens, but he'd face the Dark Lord in a duel before he wore those clothes. They were poor people and animal clothes. A Malfoy would not be caught dead in such an outfit.

He got up and wandered into the kitchen to see if he could figure out how to make something to eat. He hadn't eaten much at breakfast because he was unsettled and nervous. He hadn't known what to expect meeting the muggle woman, but she wasn't anything like he had been told about. She certainly wasn't dirty. She seemed educated enough, although her accent left much to be desired in the way that she spoke. Honestly, there wasn't much he had been told about muggles that had seemed true in the old woman.

Draco liked to be in control. Part of being in control was understanding all of your external forces. He recognised, of course, since the end of the war, that no one person should be in control all of the time, but when his life depended on it, he would much rather be the one to hold that control. Since waking up at the burrow, nothing made sense, everything was backwards and he was certainly not feeling in control of anything. He couldn't even control his own thoughts as they kept drifting back to Raven and her complete lack of normality.

As if thinking about his strange new keeper wasn't enough he caught a glimpse of her through the window over the sink. He stepped closer to watch as she and her stallion galloped across the property toward the tree line. She was graceful and refined in an untamed kind of way that had him questioning everything. She rode the horse bareback and in a way that made it seem as though they were one and the same creature. Her black hair whipped through the air behind her and he could smell the magnolia and honey scent that followed her everywhere she went, the scent seemed to settle around the whole property as if she and her home were of the same body and mind. He longed to find peace in life like the peace that echoed through every hoofbeat of the stallion and rider the further they ran.

As soon as he had that longing thought, he squashed it. He knew he would never have that kind of peace. Not because of who was out to get him, or who had awful things to say in the street, though they certainly created an obstacle, but because of who he was, what he was. He shook his head and refrained from looking at his arm. He would never feel peace like that. He would never deserve it.

Later that evening, Draco heard a knock at his door. He was tempted to ignore it, but curiosity won out and found him putting down the book he was reading. It was a muggle book he found on the bookshelf in the corner. He was moving across the room and reaching for the handle of the front door before he could even think about possible danger. If he were still in the wizarding world he'd have been far more cautious, but being that the only thing around for miles were muggles and farm animals his trepidation was kept at bay. When he opened the door he found Rae on the other side.

"Hey," she said, "Have you eaten yet?" Draco shook his head 'no' thinking back to the pitiful lunch he'd managed to put together without the use of magic or machinery. He was then distracted by thoughts of the scene he had watched earlier of her and her horse.

Rae was entirely oblivious to the thoughts moving through his mind and stated, "I figured you probably hadn't. Well, if you don't mind me coming in, I can cook dinner and show you how to work some of the kitchen appliances."

Draco didn't realize he had kept the door blocked but quietly stepped back and let her in. Rae smiled at him as she went by and headed toward the kitchen. She looked toward the small couch where he had clearly been sitting and saw that he was reading a muggle book titled _To Kill a Mockingbird_. She thought it was interesting that he would chose that book of all the books available. She wondered if it was the title of the book that drew his attention.

She could hear him following her into the kitchen even though he didn't say anything.

"Do you have any preferences? Or foods that you definitely don't like?" she asked him.

"No, I don't. I umm," he hesitated, "I've never cooked before," he stated while rubbing the back of his neck. Had her eyesight not been so keen, she may have missed the slight blush that colored his high cheekbones.

"Ok, so then we'll just add actual cooking lessons into the muggle kitchen lessons," Rae didn't let him see her miss a beat. She recognized his discomfort and was just happy that he was sharing. This self imposed silence he was putting himself through was understandable but still not what Rae wanted for him. She started moving around the kitchen and pulling things out while he stood at the counter and waited. He was glad she hadn't made a big deal out of his lack of knowledge, for some reason he was very self conscious about things that hadn't mattered before. Self conscious about things that had nothing to do with death eaters and past mistakes.

Rae spent that evening showing him how to work the oven, stovetop and several other miscellaneous appliances and gadgets. Draco was a quick study and by the end of the process she was confident that he'd be able to make himself breakfast the next morning with minimal guidance. They made a very simple dinner with chicken and vegetables. Rae figured starting small would be best. It was more about teaching him the mechanics, anyway. When the dinner had finished Rae invited herself to sit on the couch to eat with him.

Draco took in her relaxed form, and thought back over the past few days and couldn't hold it in any longer. "Why?" Rae looked up at him but didn't say anything. She just cocked her eyebrow in a way that Malfoy had previously held the patton on.

"Why are you being so nice? I don't even think you're pretending," he was entirely flustered. He'd spent every minute of the time he'd spent with her looking and observing, waiting for a sign that the kindness she exuded was only a front. Rae smiled gently and put her plate down on the table from where it had previously rested in her lap; a casualty that Draco had thoroughly turned his nose up at.

"I'm not pretending Malfoy. You have never done anything to me to make me hate you, or give me cause to treat you poorly. It's not in my nature. I want to judge your character as it is now..." Draco cut her off and began pacing.

"But I've done terrible things!" He threw his hands up in the air and looked at her as if to say 'Duh.'

"We all saw, and did terrible things during the war Draco. Doing a terrible thing doesn't make you a terrible person, it just means you had poor judgement at that moment, or no choice in the matter which, if this were the case, would nullify any responsibility for said terrible act," Rae looked him dead in the eye while telling him this. She stood and walked closer to him so that they were nearly toe to toe but not quite. "I've spent plenty of time with terrible people and so far, Draco Malfoy, you're not one of them."

He stood with his mouth open, staring, unable to come up with a response. This was the first person besides his mother who hadn't condemned him for the things that happened not so long ago.

"Draco I know you don't know me and can't possibly trust me yet," Rae continued, "but everything I said to you before is the truth. I want you to find comfort here, peace, maybe learn to forgive yourself. I don't expect you to share with me all that may have happened as I don't intend to tell you about all of my experiences, but please know that, to an extent, I can understand doing what you must to protect yourself, or your family.

If I'm wrong in my impression of you then I guess we'll deal with that later, but I'm not often wrong." With that Rae held his stare only a moment longer before turning towards the kitchen. "Would you like something to drink while I'm in here?"

Draco had no idea what to think of her. He had become so comfortable with the reproachful looks that strangers and passer-bys would throw at him, that now that a perfectly kind witch was being kind to him, he didn't know how to handle it. He didn't know how to act, he didn't know what to expect, and he certainly didn't know how to respond. He was still so bitter, and hated himself so strongly for the things he had done, that he couldn't grasp how someone else wouldn't feel the same way, or worse.

He was once again reminded that he was in the home of the very people his family's batshit crazy lord had promised to enslave and eradicate, yet here he was being accepted free of judgement or persecution. He wondered how much the muggle woman, Nana, truly knew about him and his past, what details had been kept from her.

While he was stuck in his internal musings, Rae had returned with two glasses of coca-cola and commenced with eating her dinner. When Draco registered this he sat down and began to eat too, purely due to the lack of anything else to say or do. It would take him the next week to put enough thoughts together to decide to leave his lodge.

A/N: Short chapter, kind of a filler but don't worry! More character development and enlightenment to come! Please R/R!


	6. Chapter 6

A week had passed and Rae had been thrown entirely back into her daily chores on the ranch. Primarily, her duties were connected to the horses and the few cattle they kept close to the homestead, though she was well rounded and knew how to do each job required on the ranch if she were ever needed.

She had periodically gone to visit Draco during the week, eating meals with him or bringing some different books that she thought he might like. She had noticed, eventually, that each time she stopped by a different book was on the end table as he worked his way through the small shelves there. She also loved to read so she had plenty to lend him both muggle, and magical, though admittedly she was pushing the muggle books. She had also noticed that as many books as he read through, _To Kill a Mockingbird_ was always off the shelf and lying somewhere around the lodge. The one day she stopped by she left a blank journal on the shelf when he stepped out of the room. Whether he chose to use it or not would be up to him but she knew that journaling had helped her during her initial transition back to real life after the war when she couldn't talk to anyone else about her experiences.

She was in the training pen with one of the young foals working with him on being led by the reins when she saw him on one of her rotations. He was in the closest version of wizarding clothes he could find to what was her norm yet he still refused to wear the much more practical clothes they had gotten for him. She figured she wouldn't push him on it. He would cave when he was tired of melting on a daily basis. Draco was leaned up against the post to the pasture looking at our 2 year old Blue Roan horse, Hinto. Interested as she was, she cut Oakley's lesson short and let him out into the pasture to catch up with his mom. Rae busied herself with putting away the reins and straightening up while keeping an inconspicuous eye on Draco. He seemed fascinated with the large animal that otherwise seemed entirely spooked by him. When Draco reached his hand out to touch Hinto, he took off like a bat out of hell. He was clearly not interested in making friends with Draco.

Rae called for her more seasoned Appaloosa not too far away. This caught Draco's attention and he finally looked over at her. Rae walked Anabel over to him; she kept his eye contact but he never said anything.

"Hinto's a little skittish around new people," she said brushing her palm along Anabel's neck while she talked. She looked at the dappled grey horse then and introduced her to Draco.

"This is Anabel. She's a little older and sturdier, not as easily spooked," she looked back at him then, gesturing for him to reach out to her. He put his hand out after hesitantly taking his eyes away from Rae and looking at Anabel, and Anabel leaned right into his touch. "It's amazing, you know, horses seem to understand so much. Sometimes even when people cannot." After saying this Rae looked pointedly at Draco. He cocked an eyebrow in perfect form, but didn't say a word. "I'll see ya later Draco." Rae turned away then and went back to her chores, but Draco spent the entire afternoon outside after that sometimes petting Anabel and sometimes just leaning on the fence watching the movements of the Ranch.

He didn't mind the funny looks he got from the other folks working on the ranch. Most were curious only one was reproachful. He didn't feel the need to talk to anyone and everyone else was busy enough to excuse themselves from making smalltalk with the newcomer. Draco made sure to keep stock of the one man who seemed openly angry about his presence. Draco wasn't offended. He was used to the kind of looks people gave him when they realized who he was. He was only confused because no one here should know. He made sure to evaluate the short but stocky build, the tanned summer skin and many scars on the man's arms. He didn't know his name, but he knew he'd win in a fight with or without a wand. He watched the way this guy moved. It was blocky and slow. Draco reassured himself that one pissy muggle wouldn't hurt him. Not when he had looked at the dark lord in the face so often. Draco scoffed at the absurdity of one muggle thinking he was intimidating, and chuckled to himself on the walk back to his lodge. He had no problem turning his back on this one. He'd faced many threats, and this bulky blockhead was not one of them.

Later that evening, Rae went to Draco's lodge with dinner in tow. When he opened the door to her, perfectly used to their dinner time routine now of eating together, he was surprised to see that the meal was already cooked. Usually, they prepared the food here in his lodge. When he asked, she said that she simply didn't want to spend the time cooking. She was tired and hungry. He shrugged it off figuring it made sense. She always spent her whole day outside in the sun and heat. He had quickly learned the reason for the previously documented complexion Rae sported.

When she sat the meal down, he began dishing it out while she sat down. Draco Malfoy was a very routine oriented person. While he wasn't a fan of ever actually doing work, he appreciated the little bit of normalcy their dinner time routine provided. He brought the plates and drinks to the coffee table by the couch where they'd taken to eating. Rae often ate her lunches with her Nana which he was always invited to but always skived off. There was something about that woman that still left him very unsettled and he preferred to keep his distance lest she reach into what was left of his soul and pull out whatever it was she was looking for.

Draco found himself uncomfortable in the silence that had fallen over them. Rae was usually like a hyperactive child let loose in a candy store after a day of work and she loved telling him all about it. He was to play the quiet sullen, sulky role. He decided this change in demeanor didn't suit her.

"Rae?" she looked up at him. "You okay?" She smiled slightly and let out a sigh. Internally, she was surprised he had asked. It wasn't like him to act involved but she knew she was off tonight and he probably just wanted to know what it was lest it involve him in some way.

"Yeah, I'm sorry I don't mean to be mopey, we just had to put one of our cattle down," Draco was unsure what exactly that meant but he was sure by her disposition that it wasn't a desired outcome.

"Care to explain to the non-muggle/rancher?" he tried for levity.

"Oh! Sorry I forgot! It means we had to, in effect, kill the cow. She walked into a divet in the field and broke her leg. A cow can't survive with a broken leg like that. So, rather than let her suffer, we put her out of her misery, but it still gets to me. I realize it's a part of the ranching lifestyle, as much as a person tries to avoid it, but it hasn't gotten any easier," she finished her explanation, mostly talking to herself by the end of it.

"Oh," was all Draco could say. He realized, especially after the war how affecting death still was. He really hadn't even let himself think about his mother's passing. He was sure that would hit him harder once he saw the manor again. But he had never thought of death as a regular, or expected occurrence, not here.

"Anyway, I'm sorry for the mood, it'll pass in a bit," Rae said, finally looking up at him and seeing how her explanation had affected him. She didn't bring attention to it but wanted to give him a second to process so she made like she was going to look out his kitchen window. She wondered how often he would look outside or if he spent most of his time brooding and reading.

"I remember the first time anything died around the manor. It was one of our elves. He was well over a hundred years old and sickly but he'd been one of my favorites and I'd cried when Nalby told me. My father saw," he paused, "He beat me for having the audacity to cry over something so insignificant. He told me that Malfoy's did not waste their breath concerned about the lesser beings, and they certainly don't cry like children about it. I was 7 years old then."

Rae listened intently, careful not to interrupt a very personal memory, unsure if Draco even realized he was sharing this out loud with her. As that thought crossed her mind Draco looked up for the first time ever with real emotion crossing his eyes. Rae chose to participate.

"I was always taught that all life was valuable and had a purpose, regardless of our perceived significance," she said, slowing walking over to sit next to him again on the couch, "The trees give us shade and oxygen, the cows give us meat and milk, horses transportation and companionship, wealthy people buy the crops and livestock grown and fostered by the poorer, supporting each other in an endless cycle. When a butterfly dies the world loses its beauty. My parents always wanted me to remember that though I had many 'gifts," indicating her magic, "I was no mightier or weaker than anyone else because they simply had a different gift to give. They explained that while sometimes it was necessary for life to end, it was still something worth mourning."

As Draco listened he became more and more fascinated with this woman and how she perceived the world. Never before had he realized that they grew up in such different worlds and for every reason other than class, country, or origin.

"We grew up in very different worlds," Draco shared his thoughts with her.

"Our worlds aren't so different Draco, it only takes living in both of them to realize it. After all, the wizarding world didn't invent bias or prejudice," Rae said this hoping he'd remember _To Kill a Mockingbird_ and remember that while some terrible things happened, some people turned out ok in the end.

It was two days later when Rae was out riding that she caught a glimpse of Draco leaning on the far side of the fenced enclosure. She turned and rode in his direction.

"Hey!" she said with a grin.

"Hey," he said back. He had been watching her again. Still studying her. He had never in his life been so thoroughly confused by another human being. Once she made eye contact he realized he couldn't run away.

"You do that a lot," he said. _Way to go genius. That was the best you could come up with?_

Rae chuckled, "Do what?"

"Ride that horse. Is this one of your favorites?" He asked. He had to admit since the first day he'd seen her riding he'd been curious she looked as happy as he always felt when he was on a broom.

"Well this one's mine," she smiled. "Meet Sota! Not all the horses we have here are ours necessarily. Some of them belong to the hands that help out and they board them here but most of them belong to us, to the home."

"Oh," was all he could think to say.

Rae had a thought and this could go terribly well, or horrifically wrong, "Would you want to learn?"

"Learn what?" he asked, thrown off by her offer.

"To ride," she thought through her catalogue of horses in the barn, which were too small, too big, too rambunctious, etc, until she knew which horse she's have him ride if he agreed.

"You're joking," he said without an ounce of humor. _She wants me to ride one of those stinking, monstrous beasts!? Hell, they wouldn't even let me near them if I wanted to. And I definitely don't want to._

"Not at all! Come down to the barn and I'll saddle one up for you," with that she took off toward the barn before giving him a chance to respond and for some reason, he found himself following her.

Once he had gotten to the barn he saw that she was taking Enota out of her stall. Draco thought to protest but then remembered his utter boredom after spending 2 weeks here totally cooped up. _Yeah that was it, boredom._

"Here you go!" She brought the mare over the Draco. He noted that she was a sandy orange color on her body but that her mane, tail, and feet were pitch black. She looked like she would be a mean brute of a horse but as Rae brought her over she looked Draco right in the eyes and it was like she was looking into him. He was wholly uncomfortable but something in him appreciated and recognized an acceptance by the horse and with that realization she nudged her big nose against his cheek. Rae quietly watched the exchange knowing that somehow, much more had just taken place than she could ever hope to be privy to.

While the riding lessons had been rough in the beginning, they managed to make progress. Draco hated the wide seat of the saddle, which Rae had expected since he was used to riding brooms, but after a couple days of complaints and sore legs he seemed to be getting the hang of it. Enota was a patient and steady horse. She was a bit older than some of the other horses which was why she was used a lot less for some of the more caustic work around the property. This match, if it lasted, would be good for both Draco and Enota. They both had some spunk though and they had to work that challenge out on their own. The first lesson had been hilarious.

"It's not a broom Draco, it's a living creature underneath you," she said trying to hold in the giggles watching him try to convince the horse to go left instead of right entirely with his mind like he would have had he been riding a broom.

"It's been a long time since that's been the case Hanson!" Draco yelled out at her still fighting with the horse.

Rae stopped Sota dead in his step. "Why Mr. Malfoy, was that a joke I heard?" She giggled. At that Draco seemed to realize what he had done and looked at her over his shoulder (as Enota was now walking where she wanted to) and then realizing he didn't care started to chuckle.

Rae followed after them and again showed Draco how to use the reins to move the horse this way and that. "You have to have a bond with the horse. You can do it with brute strength but it will never be smooth or natural." He looked at her as she said this. It had been a long time since he'd had a bond with anything besides Dreamless Sleep Potion. "Spend time with her over the next couple of days. Give her carrots and brush her coat. I'm telling you, it will be an entirely different experience the next time you try to ride her. There will be trust established and that does more for a horse than reins ever will."

So, much to his own dismay, Draco spent the next several days solely by the side of this horse, feeding, watering, brushing and riding her. By the 6th day he was starting to get the hang of it, even if he wasn't moving fast, they were moving in the direction he'd chosen to go rather than what the horse chose. He was so excited and he turned to Rae with a smile and she smiled back. It was a moment of triumph after so many bad moments in his life and he had savour it. Even if he would hate himself later for the enjoyment he felt on a muggle ranch in America he was starting to figure out he didn't rightly care about what should and shouldn't be, what was and wasn't proper. Who was there left to reprimand him? And after all, from what he could tell, Rae had a pretty decent life right? She was so open and bubbly, and happy. He knew he would over analyse everything that had happened later and tell himself that it shouldn't be this way and that he needed to get himself together. For that sake, he kept himself reserved even though he wanted to jump up and down and shout with joy.

Nana had watched from the comfort of her porch as over the last 3 weeks, Rae brought Draco out of his hiding. She was proud of her granddaughter and the compassion she'd shown the boy so far. He still had his moments of brooding and moodiness. She would watch as he got an attitude and would march back to the lodge slamming the door and remaining there for the rest of the night, but then she would watch as without fail every night even on the bad days, he'd open the door and let Rae in for dinner. She didn't know if Rae realized he was letting her into far more than just his lodging when he did that.

She watched now, the smile he threw over his shoulder at Rae for the first time in the time he'd been here showing true emotion, not what was expected and not the mask he liked to wear so often. She knew there was something so magical about horses, though she didn't ride anymore due to her bad hip, she knew they had a way of making a person really evaluate themselves. They offered a sort of catharsis which most people longed for.

She couldn't imagine the young man here doing the evil things that had been described to her. Though she could see his mean side, it was more of a defensiveness. She believed that same side of him could become a protectiveness if the need ever arose. The more she watched though, the more she saw his true nature. Though he had been raised in abhorrent conditions considering the bigotry that had been thrown around, he seemed to be adjusting nicely to this place, be it slowly. As she watched him trot over to her granddaughter, she again wondered whether it was this place, or the company that he was adjusting, so nicely, to being around.


	7. Chapter 7

As time passed people had asked periodically "Who was the funny pale guy wandering around not doing a damn thing?" Either Rae, or Nana, would explain each time that he was a friend from Rae's school in England. That he'd had some family trouble recently and would be spending the summer break here.

For some, this information was plenty. For others, like Darryl, it only created more questions.

"Well how close are you two? He came all the way here from England rather than stay with a friend there?" Rae rolled her eyes while she continued to move the hay. Darryl really wasn't quitting. "I mean are you dating him? How come he doesn't do anything, or talk to anyone besides you?"

"Maybe he's just shy, Darryl," Rae said hoping that he would back off. She wiped the sweat from her forehead with the back of her arm. She didn't want to be forced to tell anymore of Draco's story than she had to. It wasn't her story to tell.

"That still doesn't explain why he's here," Darryl was relentless. Finally Rae was beginning to lose her temper.

"Because he is my friend, and guest. If it bothers you so much to see him around here, then the simplest solution would be for you to be somewhere else. You do not have to come here everyday, though you are welcome. It is honestly none of your business about his personal life." Rae tried to say evenly, refraining from saying ' _or mine'_ being more difficult than she ever could have imagined, but she kept it in even though she wanted to scream it. In the past few weeks she found herself becoming very protective of Draco. She had gotten to witness a little bit of how fragile he could be and that was saying nothing for what she knew he held back.

"Are you serious!? You'd throw away years of friendship for one British fuck? Damn he must be good in the sac." After that comment, Rae was done. She dropped the bale of hay she'd been moving and turned to face Darryl head on.

"How dare you insult me on my own property. I told you, you do not need to be here. Now go." she pointed toward the drive where his Ford was parked.

"I can't believe you would do this over some skinny pale dude," he said while he tried to intimidate her by stepping into her space. She had faced far worse than a 17 year old, jealous country boy. He couldn't have scared her if he were 7 feet tall and 300 pounds. She looked right back at him not moving or blinking.

"I'm not doing this Darryl, you are. When you're done acting like a prick, then you can come back and apologize and not before then. Now, please leave, I'm behind on my chores." She turned her back on him, a clear indication she wasn't intimidated. Although she would never use it, it was nice having the whole magic thing in the back of her mind. It supported her confidence in protecting herself and made it a lot easier to piss off the asshole guys that sometimes had a tendency to come stomping around her.

In the meantime, unbeknownst to Raven, Draco had been listening in from the other side of the barn door. _Is that what people are assuming? No wonder I've been getting looks from the other workers. I had no idea she'd been dealing with all of this from these ungrateful bints. Merlin these muggles were assholes. What was Rae working so hard to protect them for? If they were this mean to her, I can't imagine what they're like on regular terms._ With that Draco quickly turned and stomped back to Lodge #2. He would keep his distance. Just as he was starting to think that maybe these muggles weren't the worst, they had to go and act like that. He had his own problems to deal with anyway. He needed to remember to focus on himself and not others. Regardless, of how he felt though there was a part of him that was touched at Rae's steadfast defense of him, but he wouldn't be the reason she did that anymore. If they had questions about him, they better come talk to him. Cowardly pricks. All of them.

Later that evening, Rae went over to Draco's door and knocked as she always did, although, this time the door didn't swing open for her. She called out to him but got no answer. She tried one last time knocking, and was starting to worry but remembered her promise never to enter without permission. She assumed he must have fallen asleep and missed their meal. She would head up to the main house then tonight and leave him be. He must be tired and she didn't want to disturb him, and she refused to acknowledge the part of her that was hopelessly disappointed that he didn't answer.

Behind the door, Draco listened as she walked away, then he went into the kitchen to make dinner for himself for the first time since he'd arrived.

Two more days passed and that evening Rae looked at the clear sky full of stars and a 3-quarter moon. It was a beautiful night and she refused to be ignored any longer. She marched over to Draco's lodge fully prepared to make a scene if necessary. It was early July and the days were long, and she had grown used to her time with the cowardly, pompous, snivelling jerk that was hiding in his hole. She marched with a purpose to Lodge #2 and knocked loudly. When no answer came, she continued knocking faster and louder. Finally the door swung open to a worried looking Malfoy.

"What's wrong!?" he asked.

"You've been avoiding me," she said as she shouldered her way through the door.

"Are you kidding me?" he turned towards her while slamming the door shut. "You carried on like that because I've been mellow the past couple days?"

"Mellow? If that's what you want to call it! The only reason I knew you weren't dead is because I didn't smell dead body coming from your windows!"

"Well don't we like to be dramatic! Can you take it elsewhere? I'm busy." Draco tried getting past her, but she sidestepped to be right in his way.

"Busy with what Malfoy? Watching paint dry? You don't have anything in here to be busy with!" She was fuming before she was annoyed with his avoidance now he was lying. To be honest she was hurt. Though she knew she shouldn't be, she couldn't help it. "What did I do?"

"What could you possibly be talking about?" Draco tried to roll his eyes for effect but it went unrecognized.

"Why are you avoiding me? What did I do? I thought we were getting along? Then out of nowhere radio silence for days! What did I do that was so horrible you won't even look me in the eye!?" This last part she yelled as he had been looking everywhere but at her through her whole speech.

"You didn't do anything, I just needed alone time. You know? Privacy? Or is that a foreign concept to you and your precious muggles?" He asked with meanness in his voice.

Rae sat back at this. He hadn't made a single derogatory remark since he got here until this moment. Then it seemed to make sense. If they weren't getting answers out of her, they must have turned to him.

"Who?" Rae asked much quieter now. Draco refused to look at her. She had no idea that he'd chosen to go into hiding well before that Darryl creep had come snooping around his lodge. He'd never felt so defenseless without a wand, and to think the terrible-awful he'd been afraid of was a teenage muggle. But he couldn't help it, he'd spent so much time being afraid, and he was ultimately ashamed. Even if he'd previously felt so confident about his chances at winning a fight.

"It doesn't matter." he said not having the energy to fight with her anymore. He was severely out of practice.

"It does Draco. You are a guest here. No one has the right to bother, intimidate, or harass you in anyway," Rae started moving toward him but at that moment he didn't want her help, he didn't want her empathy, he didn't deserve it. He had almost forgotten who he was. He'd allowed himself to feel happy and he wasn't worthy of that anymore, not after the things he'd done. Not after what he'd watched and not stopped.

"Just stop!" Rae was surprised but hid it well. Now that she had somewhat figured out the source of the problem she had more even footing to battle on. "Just leave me alone!" Draco started screaming. "This isn't some vacation, I'm not here for a good time. I'm on house arrest. A criminal. A death eater. I don't need your help. I don't want it! I don't want your pity, or your horses, or your dinners! Just leave me be to serve out my sentence until I can leave this stinking hellhole and go back to my life!"

Rae sighed. This isn't what she'd intended in coming over here, though she didn't know what she'd expected. "You know Draco, it's not a bad thing to accept help when it's being offered, or even to seek it out when necessary. I won't bother you anymore, but you know where I am if you need anything."

She looked at him again from where she'd made her way to the door and his back was still turned on her. "For what it's worth Draco, I'm sorry that someone hurt you." With that she walked out past the counter and out the door. He didn't know if she'd meant the muggle that had come snooping, or the series of life events that had come before. As he turned around to spit back a snotty response he saw that she was already gone, quiet as a fox out the door. He also noticed she'd left something behind. It was a blue swirling potion. His whole body went cold and he wondered how she'd known. At the same time, he was pissed that he'd have to accept this help if none other, and worst of all, he'd have to go talk to her about it. Because if she knew, who else did?

Sienna was in Raven's lodge. She and her family went away every June. That's why she hadn't been around for the first part of the summer but now she was back and curious about Raven's new British boy thing living in Lodge #2. Sienna and Raven had been best friends since before Raven knew she had magic. Sienna was none the wiser, though she knew there were things she didn't know about her best friend, she knew that anything Raven kept from her had its reasons. That didn't stop her from trying to wring it out of her though.

"C'mon Raerae, is he handsome? Is he good in bed? OoOoOoOo is he an athlete? Tell me what's his favorite book?" Rae knew this would go on for some time before Sienna grew bored and got serious but for now it was fun to watch her being dramatic and throwing herself this way and that on the couch. "Is he the big hulking football build?" Raven shook her head, certainly not. "Okay what about like a soccer player? Or a swimmer?"

"Closer," Rae said.

"Ugh! I love swimmers, with their broad shoulders and strong legs, Dayum!"

Rae chuckled at her over exuberant friend. She had missed her.

"But actually, Raven Bell…" Rae looked up at Sienna trying to be serious. "What's the deal? You've never brought a guy home before…"

"It's not that I'm bringing a guy home persay, it's just that he needed an out for a bit and I had a room available." Rae again was trying to tiptoe around Draco's personal life.

"Right so it has nothing to do with him being dreamy?" Sienna said while batting her eyelashes at her.

"You say that like you've even had a chance to see him," Rae chuckled at her friend again, "I know you only got home today and I know he's been hibernating today because he hasn't been feeling well this week."

Sienna rolled her eyes. "Well, you should bring him to Daniel's party tonight."

Rae's eyes widened, though Sienna didn't see, "I don't think that's a good idea…"

"Why not! Stop keeping him all to yourself!" Sienna giggled, "Everyone said you've been holed up here all summer and haven't been out once."

"I'm just trying to help him get acclimated. This is very different than how he grew up." Rae tried to convince her friend otherwise.

"If you want to acclimate him, then you take him out to meet people." Sienna said, rolling to her back like she was exhausted with having to explain the world to Raven.

"If you want him to go, then you invite him," Rae chuckled partially because she knew that Sienna would never turn that down she was far too curious about the new foreign neighbor, and because she couldn't wait to see Draco's face when he opened the door to anyone but her, and because of the gift she had left him, she knew he would open.

With that Sienna stood, lifted her nose high in the air and strutted out of the lodge straight for Lodge #2. Rae watched from her bedroom window which faced that direction, she opened the window to be able to hear clearly what was being said. This was bound to be good.


End file.
